Something Unexpected
by Caithlinn13
Summary: Something is happening in Akiba and Shiroe is nowhere in sight. No one knows where he is or what happened to him.
1. Prologue

**A/N Hey everybody! A Log Horizon fic here :3**

**O dear... -.-' I'm really exited to upload this, though also kinda afraid to, but hey, just trying here. :) Hope you'll like it! Please let me know and review. :D**

**Betaed by the awesome Ebeewhale, thank you so much! :D (Normally I'd say 'English isn't my native language, but since it is betaed and I got an A on the Cambridge exam I did last june (I think), there shouldn't be much mistakes. If you do find one... woops.. ^^ tehe~)**

**Hopefully the characters won't be too OOC, it's been a while since I saw the anime. So if I missed facts, please let me know. Also, I don't really know if they can feel pain in the game (they scream and flinch and stuff like that...) so I just assumed they did. Would also make it more interesting, I think... ^^**

**And I'll do this only once since it's a pain and it's called fanfiction.. Disclaimer: Do not own!**

**Please read and review! For now; just enjoy the preview! :D**

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**Prologue**

Shiroe blinked, his vision blurry.

What happened? Keeping his balance was unexpectedly hard and he stumbled against the wall, almost falling. Why did his head feel like exploding? Why did he feel like sleeping and never waking up?

He shivered, trying to fight the effects of whatever it was that kept him in this state.

When he fell, he still fought against it and tried to stay upright. The corners of his vision were darkening and flickering.

Whoever was trying to make him black out was doing a damn good job. He gritted his teeth, trying to stay conscious and find a way out of the mess he was in. How did he even end up in it?

It was hard to keep his concentration, Shiroe flinched when he noticed a particularly loud noise filling his aching head. With his blurry eyes it was difficult to find out what the noise was, his fingers sliding forward to make up for it and he found shards of glass in a wet substance.

Oh. That's right, he was drinking some wine when he heard something. But when he shifted his focus on.. What? There was something… A lingering suspicion. There had to be something. Someone.

Someone! There was someone with him in the room.

But there was only silence, except for his raspy gasps. How did it end up like this? He didn't know any spells to help him, but was it even a spell that made him like this?

No, impossible, he would have found a trace of magic in the room. What then? Poison?

The wine!

But that wine was something he bought himself from a random store. It couldn't have been poisoned then. But when? It couldn't be done in the house, they wouldn't have been able to enter without his consent.

It couldn't be…

Shiroe coughed. It felt as if there was a fire burning inside his chest.

He opened his eyes but couldn't see anything besides the blurry shape of his desk with a single chair. When did he even close them?

Oh no, this wasn't good. Not good at all. His strength was leaving him.

Shiroe blinked, a desperate attempt to stay awake, as he struggled to move his arms and legs. Where was his staff when he needed it?

It appeared in his hands. Apparently he hadn't yet taken it out of the system.

The staff helped him stand up without falling. It helped him stay upright while he struggled to move towards the door, his energy quickly leaving him.

It looked like the door wasn't coming closer.

Or was it that his vision was failing him?

Or maybe it was his limbs who weren't listening to him.

He fell, his head knocking against the door, efficiently closing it. Why was it even open? He always closed the door.

His staff slipped out of his grip and rolled out of his reach.

Frustrated he tried to get up, growing more desperate with the second. His calm demeanor was nowhere in sight. But then again, he wasn't ever fed poison before, so he could understand why he was getting scared.

But he didn't like it; he didn't like it at all.

Naotsugu, chief, Akatsuki… What he intended to be a shout was hardly more than a breathy whisper.

Wait! Telepathy!

He had almost no strength left, but the adrenalin in his body forced his arm upwards, reaching the 'call' button on the menu in the air.

Naotsugu!

Please pick up, please pick up, please pick up….

The dial tone resounded within his head as he felt his conscious slipping.

"Naotsugu…" Shiroe whispered, before slipping into unconsciousness, ending the call.

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**A/N So... Did you like it? Please review and tell me! :D**

**For now, till next time! (I don't know how long it'll take though, sorry, but I won't stop writing!)**

**~Blessed be, Caithlinn**


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N Sooooooo, here's chapter 1! I really wanted to update earlier, but school's being a bother and I don't feel 100%... Sorry 'bout that. Plus I was kinda stuck in chapter 3. (Cause I'd like to stay a few chapters ahead so when needed I can change little things when I reread the chapters. (So after I finish writing chapter 4 I'll upload chapter 2 for you guys.))**

**Thank you for all the follows, favs and the reviews, it's really awesome when you come home after a long day and there are reviews waiting for you in your inbox. Unfortunately, I can't reply to any guest reviews...**

**And once again: a big thanks for my betareader: Ebeewhale, she's awesome!**

**Also, I got the picture for this fic from deviantart, if you're interested, take a look. A thank you for _yousam _for letting me use the picture.**

**Ok then, just enjoy! :)**

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Naotsugu was outside, walking towards his home. He was happy within Log Horizon, with the few members making it like a family.

Chief was the parent, he always had good advice, good food and a friendly face. Isuzu, Rundelhouse Code (Rudy) and the twins, Minori and Touya, their youngest members, almost like a little brothers and sisters. Akatsuki was the elder sister, although small, she was very strong and straightforward; well, with most of the things. Sometimes she was just as vague as Minori. Though it was mostly because of Shiroe. Shiroe, their strategist, was the smart guy in their weird little family. Naotsugu didn't know exactly what kind of position that guy would have in a family, but figured he was their leader.

Shiroe was a leader he very much respected. Even though he could come across as a villain, hence the name 'villain in glasses'. Shiroe was actually very caring and protective, he just didn't let others know about that side of him. And though he hated belonging to guilds before, the fact that he finally made a home of his own made Naotsugu happy and honored when he was asked to join – he happily agreed.

Log Horizon, obviously a name Shiroe came up with, was a fine guild, one he was proud of and that much was obvious. Naotsugu chuckled. Shiroe was a good guy.

Smiling he picked up the pace to be home a little quicker.

That was when he got the call.

"Oh! Shiroe!" Naotsugu grinned and he answered the call.

But before he could shout out any kind of greeting he heard his name. As a whisper. That was when he knew there was something wrong.

The call ended as abruptly as in began.

And Naotsugu didn't waste a second, dashing home as soon as the call ended.

He tried calling back, but the call didn't even get through.

Frowning with worry he tried again but this time too, the call got cut before it got through.

Something was wrong. Something was horribly wrong.

He tried calling Nyanta. The dial tone filled his head. So it wasn't the system, Naotsugu mused.

_"__Nya? Naotsugu-cchi? Why'd you call? I was almost finished here."_

"Chief, listen. I got a call from Shiroe."

_"__Shiroe-cchi?"_ Nyanta asked, puzzled. _"Something is wrong. Tell me what's wrong."_

As expected from chief, Naotsugu thought, with so little hints he could tell when something was up.

"I don't know. The call lasted only for a second or two before being cut off. He whispered my name. Couldn't even finish it before the call ended."

Silence filled the line. "Chief?"

_"… __You're going there right now."_

It wasn't a question and Naotsugu didn't bother answering, he just tried to pick up the pace a little more.

_"__I'll meet you there."_

And with that the call was cut off and Naotsugu ended up running even harder.

People turned to look at him, not understanding that something could be wrong within the city; not even knowing why he was running; nor why he looked so troubled.

He turned around the corner, the building owned by Shiroe in full sight. He threw the door open, not bothering to close it. His feet slamming down on the stairs.

Faster! Faster!

Naotsugu almost panicked.

The door leading to Shiroe's study was closed. Shiroe never left the door open. But somehow it only added to the uneasiness and the suspicion that something was wrong.

Upon entering the room he didn't even doubt it anymore. The shattered wineglass, the red stain on the carpet… They were all dead giveaways. Something was horribly wrong and Shiroe was nowhere in sight.

"Shiroe!" he shouted, hoping for an answer. "Shiroe! Come on, answer me!"

Footsteps resounded through the hall behind Naotsugu, and he turned, hoping to see Shiroe coming up behind him to ask him why he was shouting so loud.

"Naotsugu-cchi."

Ah, it was Nyanta.

"Chief."

There was a worried look in Nyanta's eyes, one that worsened after seeing the hopelessness in Naotsugu's expression and the state of Shiroe's study.

"He's gone." It wasn't a question and Naotsugu didn't answer. Instead he just stepped into Shiroe's room. Then he noticed the abandoned staff.

Oh God, no. No please, just let it be a joke. If only it was a joke.

Nyanta noticed it too, and the look in his eyes became unreadable.

"He didn't go willingly." _Damn right he didn't_, Naotsugu wanted to say, _that much was obvious_, but he just stared at the staff, picking it up and holding it in his hands as if it was a fragile treasure.

"If he didn't go willingly someone must have forced him," Nyanta said, and Naotsugu nodded, trying to calm down and think. "How?"

Nyanta narrowed his eyes and said: "There are a number of possibilities. Though Shiroe-cchi is smart, so most of them won't work on him. And that's besides the fact that he's an enchanter, so the hostage-situation won't work too. If it was, he would've used the Thorn Binding spell. The only other options I see right now are surprising him so that they can refrain him from uttering the spell."

"No," Naotsugu shook his head immediately. "He whispered my name. He was totally out of it, and really quiet, but he still whispered my name, so he could still speak."

Nyanta nodded thoughtfully. "So that theory is out. The second possibility is poison."

Naotsugu looked up with wide eyes. "Poison?"

Nyanta nodded again and said: "It isn't against the system, so it won't be hindered. And I don't see another way to surprise Shiroe-cchi enough that he can't find a way out of the situation. Poison would explain the fact that he didn't sound like he had his normally calm demeanor. It also explains why he could be attacked inside his own house, you know no one is allowed in without permission from Shiroe-cchi."

Naotsugu nodded. "But that doesn't mean anything. He could've had a visitor. Besides how would they have gotten him out?"

Nyanta narrowed his eyes. "You're right. He could've. One that took Shiroe-cchi with him."

"But where would they go? If Shiroe was poisoned it is likely that was passed out. That was how he sounded, at least."

It stayed silent.

"A carriage maybe? Or they just disappeared with a spell, or they just walked out of sight in the shadows."

Naotsugu nodded. "Maybe we should bring this matter to the Round Table?"

Nyanta nodded warily. "Yes, I believe that would be best."

Though there was something. He couldn't place a finger on it. Something didn't sound right. Something didn't make sense, but what?

"Chief?"

Nyanta shook his head, ignoring his unconscious mind that demanded attention. "It's nothing. Come on, let's go."

* * *

It took quite some time to assemble all the members from the Round Table, and during that time Naotsugu couldn't sit still. Nyanta looked troubled himself and the continued pacing from Naotsugu, which was quite annoying to be frank, kept him from concentrating on finding a solution to the strange feeling he had when leaving the Log Horizon building with Naotsugu; the feeling that something didn't fit in the picture they had.

When finally, finally, the members all arrived at their rightful place at the table, you could see the confusion on the faces of some of them – confusion about why Nyanta was the one who called them all together, wondering why Shiroe didn't do it himself. Wasn't he the Guild Master and Host?

Some of them were whispering with each other, maybe someone knew the answers to their questions, but with no such luck.

Then Nyanta stepped through the doors and walked up to the table, Naotsugu right behind him.

Silence filled the entire room.

"What's the reason for this? Why were we called to a meeting when we have one in three days? Where's Shiroe?"

That was Krusty. His eyes were narrowed and he stared right at Nyanta, who didn't look bothered by it at all. Instead, there shone a sadness in his eyes. It confused Krusty. 'What's wrong?'

Naotsugu almost smiled. Another one who is quite perceptive; Krusty was a smart one..

"I'm afraid we have bad news," Nyanta said, starting the meeting.

The whispering, which had started again when Nyanta didn't answer the first string of questions, died and once again silence filled the hall.

"Shiroe-cchi is gone."

He couldn't even explain before the members started chattering like chickens. Naotsugu could understand their feelings, but he wished they would shut up. They didn't have time for this. Shiroe was kidnapped for God's sake! The noise got louder and louder until he'd had enough.

"SHUT UP!"

You could hear a needle drop in the next seconds, no one even dared to breathe.

Nyanta glanced at Naotsugu, thanking him in that split second, before saying: "I know this is a lot to take in, but please refrain from making any noise. If not, we will waste time in finding him."

"What do you mean 'he's gone'? Where did he go?"

That was Isaac, and Naotsugu could see why he'd say that. 'He's gone' didn't say much besides the obvious.

"Exactly what I mean," was the simple answer from Nyanta. "Shiroe-cchi's gone. We believed he was poisoned and then kidnapped."

Silence.

"… Poisoned?" Came the tentative response.

Nyanta nodded. "I don't see any other way in which they would've succeeded in taking Shiroe-cchi."

There were some nods.

"Then, what do we do?"

Naotsugu averted his eyes. That was a question he too wanted to know the answer to, but he just couldn't come up with one.

Nyanta also looked troubled. Apparently he didn't know a direct answer to the question either.

Krusty noticed.

"I think it might be best to have this meeting and try to come up with some conclusions as to why, why him, where he might be, who would do something like this, and other questions like that."

All heads nodded after hearing Krusty's suggestion and they settled down in a way that showed they were prepared to sit for quite some time.

And the meeting took quite some time; longer than most of them had hoped, much longer than Naotsugu and Nyanta wanted, but what could they do about it? This was their best chance, and they would take it.

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**A/N Sooo.. I hope you enjoyed. :) Please review! And until next chapter!**

**~Blessed be, Caithlinn**


	3. Chapter 2

**A/N Sooo.. Yeah. Sorry I've been gone for so long. I've been away with school for a week and then I've been ill for a week, and then the chapter I was working on was really difficult to write, but I changed some things and then it became really easy to continue writing.**

**I know I said in the very first AN that they could feel pain and stuff.. But I kind of changed how I thought about that.. Soo... They don't really feel pain, cause I'll use that little fact later on.. ;)**

**I guess that was it for now.. Not sure if there was anything else that you needed to know, but if so, then.. I'll just put it in another A/N.. xD**

**For now: Read and have fun. :D **

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It was Krusty who took the lead in the meeting now that Shiroe disappeared, and not Nyanta. Naotsugu was sure he wasn't the only one who was a bit surprised by that, but Nyanta looked like he didn't mind; as long as they were trying to find a solution.

Both of them had told their stories in detail. They asked Minori, who was working close by, to go home and take pictures of Shiroe's study and to search for any clues they might have missed in the moments they were there.

After Nyanta ended the call with her, he concentrated on the bickering voices. He was right on time for a voting.

"Those in favor, please raise your hand."

More than half of the members raised their hands. Nyanta stayed quiet, wanting to know what the voting was about.

"More than half are in favor of the suggestion. We'll keep this situation a secret for as long as possible with the exception of the members from Log Horizon, the members of the Round Table, and the ones we all deem necessary."

There was some nodding, also by those who hadn't raised their hand. Krusty continued.

"Now, on to the next point of discussion. We'll leave the small matters for another meeting and concentrate on Shiroe for now. Is anyone against this?"

No one said anything. Aside from someone shaking his head, there wasn't any reaction.

"Okay then," Krusty started. "Shiroe. He's gone, poisoned we believe."

"The only clues we have are the staff and the shattered wine glass," Nyanta said softly.

"Not much of a clue," was heard in the murmurs that erupted.

"Minori is currently searching for more clues, for anything we might have missed; after all, we were there for only a few minutes. She'll contact me if, or when, she finds something or not."

Krusty nodded. "We can't conclude anymore than we already have from the scene if no further evidence is found."

Naotsugu narrowed his eyes. "No, we can't. Is there anything we can do? Maybe there's another way to figure out what happened? And who might have kidnapped Shiroe…."

Silence filled the hall, all members deep in thought.

"Let me rephrase that question," Nyanta said. "We need to start with something we might be able to figure out, and if we figure that out we can go on from there and hopefully find some answers."

"True," Marielle agreed. "But then what is a question that fits? All questions I have are impossible to figure out."

"Don't say something as infinite as impossible. It might be difficult, but with enough clues everything can be figured out," Krusty answered.

"Why would someone need Shiroe?" Nyanta asked.

Silence.

"And that is a question with an easy answer?" Someone asked, the sarcastic tone wasn't lost to anyone.

"I never said it was an easy answer to find," Nyanta responded with a calm voice. "I said maybe we would be able to figure something out, and that question seems the one most likely to provide an answer. Or, if that is not possible, at least with some new information."

"New information? When we don't know anything? There's nothing to gain by speculating."

Something snapped in Naotsugu.

"Nothing to gain? By discussing the subject we can come up with theories! They can at least help us discard possibilities. We need to find Shiroe! He's been taken to God knows where! Who knows what they're doing to him? They might torture him, you know? You can at least help us with that! Don't say it's impossible without at least trying!"

"Nya." Nyanta put a hand on Naotsugu's arm to stop him from ranting and venting out frustrations. "Ma, ma, don't lash out now, they're just afraid," he said quietly.

Naotsugu turned, desperation in his eyes.

Nyanta saw the question and said: "Someone managed to kidnap Shiroe. You know how difficult that must be. After all, it's Shiroe we're talking about."

Naotsugu nodded and took a deep breath. He knew that feeling: he himself had difficulties hiding the fact that it scared him, too.

He turned to face the members of the Round Table.

"Sorry for snapping, I'm scared too. We're dealing with someone who wants something so badly that he'll resort to kidnapping to get it. I don't find it strange for him to try and force Shiroe to help. Also we might be in a position in which we can't stay dead, but we can still die, and if we do we lose memories – not to mention we still feel pain. There're countless possibilities of forcing him to do whatever it is they want."

Naotsugu sighed. "I'm not sure how far they'll go… And how much Shiroe can take."

For a minute everyone seemed to think about this for themselves, trying to imagine where Shiroe could be and under what circumstances.

Then Isaac spoke up: "What do you mean by that?" He sounded slightly confused.

"What do I mean by what?"

"You said you're not sure how much Shiroe can take. Why not? He's strong and ruthless. He can take whatever they throw at him."

Isaac sounded confident, but Naotsugu shook his head.

"He's not the invincible, scary guy you think." Everyone looked at him with a slight surprise.

"Wait, don't tell me you all thought that?" He glanced at Marielle and Krusty, but he couldn't read the looks on their faces. They probably thought as much, but didn't know for sure.

Shiroe never showed the caring side to others, so it wasn't that surprising that none of them knew, but he had thought at least some of them would be able to see further than that outer mask Shiroe always wore. Maybe some of it was a part of Shiroe, but…

He sighed.

"You really couldn't see further that the mask he created? Are the members from my guild really the only ones who could see over the wall he built?"

_Really, Shiroe, why wouldn't he let it down? Why did he keep portraying himself as a bad guy with ulterior motives?_

Naotsugu glanced at Nyanta, trying to figure out if he should at least tell them. Nyanta looked hesitant, but gave him a slight nod.

When he turned back all eyes were on him. _Well then, how to tell…?_

_Okay, we'll start with a question._

"Has someone ever seen anything different than how he normally acts?"

…..

"Anybody?"

…

"I don't know for sure," Marielle finally answered, "but I think I have."

Naotsugu turned to meet her eyes, urging her to speak.

"It was still in the beginning, before the forming of the Round Table Alliance. I called Shiro-bou to my guild's headquarters. There was a member stuck in another city where a violent guild lived, ruled by Demikas."

"Susukino," Krusty said as his eyes flicked dark for a second and Naotsugu nodded, he remembered the incident. He finally got to fight alongside Nyanta and Shiroe together again.

Marielle nodded. "Serara was saved by Nyanta, but they were searching for her, so my guild planned for a party to take her out of that city and back to Akiba. I asked Shiroe if he could keep an eye out for the members of my guild that stayed. He didn't accept."

"See! He really is the villain in glasses!" Someone said.

"What's the point of this story?" Another asked. "Get to the point."

Murmurs erupted, but Isaac took charge and hit the table with a fist. "If you wanna know, shut up and let her tell her story!" He glared at them as they 'eeped'.

Marielle nodded once. "As I said, he didn't want to. Instead, he took the mission and with only two friends, Naotsugu and Akatsuki, he made the journey and brought Serara back safely with Nyanta accompanying her. He didn't have to do that. To make that Journey with just two people by his side is dangerous, especially since Demikas didn't want to let them go.

And he built a guild, a home for himself. He's been soloing every since Tea Party, and refusing to join any invites to our guilds. I know that there is more to him that we don't know about, and since it was only a game…

I've always wondered what he's like in real life."

In the silence that fell all of them nodded thoughtfully. Except Naotsugu.

Krusty noticed.

"You met him in real life."

It wasn't a question, but Naotsugu nodded all the same, not wanting to lie.

"Can you tell us?" There was some wonder in her voice when Marielle spoke.

Naotsugu hesitated.

"I… won't tell you much. That is for Shiroe to tell. However, I can tell you he is always a quiet person, and always is inside. That's not much different from here actually. Here he's also often inside, always working, figuring out problems, and trying… trying to find a way home."

He paused for a moment, wondering how much he'd tell them.

"… He may be smart and he seems strong, and he is, but he's still human and that invincible mask of his won't change that. He still cares, even if he doesn't show it. He cares for loved ones and helps when needed. I don't know if I'm supposed to tell you this, but he flew from the Ancient City of Eternal Ice all the way to the village where four kids, our youngest members, were fighting while we were stuck with the goblin quest. Because Minori asked him for help."

"What happened?" Isaac asked.

"One of the members died and they couldn't revive him," Naotsugu answered. "The potion didn't work and healing spells did nothing but waste MP and delay the inevitable."

"But that means…"

Nyanta nodded. "Yes, that's right. He was one of the people of the land."

"Then how…?" Marielle wasn't the only one confused.

"Shiroe. He flew all the way back and saved him by using the same reasoning Nyanta used when figuring out how we could taste the food. The same reasoning we use in all of our work. He's a level 90 enchanter, and a level 90 scribe. He used that to his advantage."

"But how? It isn't possible to revive one of the people of the land!"

"He turned him into an adventurer by using a new magic."

Silence.

"…How is that possible?"

"Because he's Shiroe." That was the only thing Naotsugu had to say to that. "He helps when needed and often lets others take the credit. He may be smart en seemingly a league all of its own, but he cares. He's still a human being, and it doesn't matter that we're stuck in this game, we can't overstep our boundaries as humans."

They seemed to think about that.

"Now that the roadblock is out of the way, can we tackle the problem regarding Shiroe's kidnapping?" Naotsugu asked, irritated because all of time they wasted.

"One more thing," Isaac said, but paused as he hesitated to ask.

"What is it? What do you want to know?" Nyanta asked, directing his full attention to the man on the other side of the table.

Isaac bit his lip but asked: "Why… Why does Shiroe always wear that mask of his?"

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**A/N So? What'd you think? Looking forward to next chapter? Please review! Things you liked, maybe didn't like.. Things that are incorrect (if possible I can try and change things...) anything you noticed? Things you thought? Things you expect? Or just a small sentence to tell me to continue? ;)**

**Anyways, please review, it means a lot to me! :)**

**~Blessed be, Caithlinn**


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